Persona 5 has a ton of romances to choose from. You would need to play through the game about nine times to get through every romance scenario. It’s a long game too, with an average of almost 100 hours to complete the main story! That’s a lot of content to get every romance.
Luckily the internet exists, so players can share their opinions and experiences on these romances. After reading the thoughts ofPersona 5 fans, we created a list of the best and worst romances in the game. Also, a fair warning: spoilers for the game and the romances are ahead.
11 (Best) Futaba Sakura - Hermit
Futaba is an unusual character in the fact that she actually asks you to steal her heart. More than that, she becomes a member of the Phantom Thieves after that. Her connection to your caretaker, Sojiro, is also very interesting. Some fans have admitted to romancing her just to see how Sojiro reacts, however they ended up falling in love with Futaba for real instead.
Her romance is about coming out of her shell and being more comfortable with society. That involves a lot of interaction and trust with Joker, which makes her one of the best romances.
10 (Worst) Ichiko Ohya - Devil
Ohya is an unremarkable, drunk, and bad journalist. She is also one of those characters that seem way older than the main character. As a bad journalist, she only cares for stories that sell rather than stories that deserve to be told. In her defense, she used to be a better journalist until uncovering a scandal forced her to change her career. She is not just a bad romance, but an unpopular confidant. Joker is definitely better off with someone else.
That’s not to say that Ohya doesn’t have a decent story arc that isn’t worth uncovering. However, when it comes to the topic of romance, there are simply more likable and… appropriate companions for Joker to have in the game instead of this journalist.
9 (Best) Kasumi Yoshizawa - Faith
Persona 5 Royal’s only new romanceable character is the graceful gymnast, Kasumi Yoshizawa. Although many hoped to finally be able to go on a romantic pancake date with Akechi, Royal’s newest party member provides one of the most wholesome relationships out of the main cast and beyond.
Kasumi is polite, shy, and confident, and watching her shell slowly break open as you get to know her is nothing short of heartwarming. Her rank 9 and 10 confidants are quite a treat, especially in rank 9, with Joker showing his true colors as the rebellious trickster by pulling off some genuinely suave moves after the two profess their love for one another.
8 (Best) Haru Okumura - Empress
Haru is well-loved by fans, and many are disappointed that she only comes in the latter part half of the game. Many have probably already even picked their romance before meeting her. However, they miss out. She is kind, adorable, and tough all at once, and it is easy to feel protective of her.
To add a little juicy drama to her romance, she is in an arranged marriage with a total jerk. Romancing her shakes that up a little more than in the basic plot, although it’s far from the only notable thing about this character. It’s a shame that she’s the last playable character that players unlock well into the story — her allure as a Persona 5 romance option could’ve been stronger, had she appeared earlier.
7 (Worst) Chihaya Mifune - Fortune
Chihaya is not popular because it is possible to totally miss her if you ignore the rumors of a fortune teller in Shinjuku. More than that, you have to pay 100,000 yen to buy a useless item to continue with her story, which can prove to be a major barrier that prevents people from unlocking this Confidant until a fair way in.
She is cute and sweet, but there is very little to her compared to other romance options in the game. She is very far from being a plot-relevant character, although that shouldn’t be a huge deal for players who don’t mind going down this path. On top of spending a lot of money, she also has multiple Mementos quests for you to complete, which can either be intriguing or a source of great annoyance for the player.
6 (Best) Makoto Nijima - Priestess
Makoto is considered a queen by her fans. Fans who like her, REALLY like her, and even consider her to be the canon romance of the game. She also is relatively easy to romance and is incredibly plot-relevant. After all, it is her sister who is interrogating Joker throughout the game. She is a very important asset to the Phantom Thieves. Also, her Persona is a motorcycle. How much cooler can you get?
While her character is typically composed and a little uptight, you get to see a more flustered and shy side of her if she is romanced. It’s an endearing change that adds to the notion of Makoto being one of the best Persona 5 romance options by a country mile.
5 (Worst) Sadayo Kawakami - Temperance
This romance is actually a little popular, but we are pushing back. Dating your teacher has some blurry ethics and that actually might be a reason why she is popular. Like Ohya, she is also of an older age where the romance feels pretty unbalanced in terms of life experiences.
Just leveling her up as a confidant is a little crazy. Since she works part-time as a maid, you can call her to clean your room. However, she is also your teacher! That is just awkward. No wonder you need a certain level of Guts score to call her. While the benefits of having Kawakami as a Confidant can be pretty great, the icky nature of this romance still persists regardless.
4 (Best) Ann Takamaki - Lovers
Ann is the first female Phantom Thief, so you get a lot more content with her than you do with the other girls. Characters like Ryuji and Morgana have huge crushes on her. In fact, those crushes can get pretty annoying and offensive as you progress through the game. Some fans actually have said that the best part of romancing Ann is to get at Ryuji and Morgana. She certainly is popular, and the main reason is that she is the first Phantom Thief that is available.
The best part about Ann is that she certainly seems like nothing more than the token romance character. However, progressing into her personal story reveals a deeper and more engaging aspect of her character that makes her a fan-favorite character and one of the best Persona 5 romance options.
3 (Worst) Tae Takemi - Death
The woman who serves you medicine, a goth doctor, would seem like an interesting romance choice at first. However, she is not very plot-relevant like the Phantom Thief girls, and she also appears to be one of those older-aged options that create a rift between them and Joker. Joker is a high school student, not an average one for sure, but he is still a kid. So the older romance choices are a little weird, especially in American culture.
Also, your business with her is very shady. You can test out drugs for her. While she is a kind and compassionate character deep down, she is still experimenting with drugs on a high school kid, which is a rather odd thing to do. Thankfully, her tests do end up bearing positive results, which is perhaps the only takeaway from this side story.
2 (Best) Hifumi Togo - Star
Hifumi is the only girl around Joker’s age that is not a Phantom Thief who is a romance option. She also goes to a different high school, the same one that Yusuke attends. She is a Female Shogi League Champion and teaches Joker Shoji, although her passion for the sport wanes after her oppressive mother decides to use her to compensate for her own failed hopes and dreams.
She is pretty difficult to max out and is not plot-relevant. However, she is one of the best Persona 5 romance options because she is another person in high school like Joker. She may not be a Phantom Thief, but she has one of the best confidant abilities in the game. She gives you the ability to swap team members in the middle of a fight, which is invaluable for obvious reasons. It also makes battles in the game quite dynamic, with players having the ability to bring new party members into battle to change the flow of battle in the blink of an eye.
1 (Worst) Everyone At Once
Well, that covers every romance. However, there is still one awful decision players can make in the game. They can try dating everyone at once! However, players who do that get a cutscene that has all the women come over on Valentine’s Day in one of the most awkward and hilarious moments in the game. The moment when they discover that you have been dating all of them at once is pretty harrowing, following which they beat you up and leave.
Choices have consequences, so players should ensure that they try to focus on one Persona 5 romance option instead of aiming for the lot. Doing so will ensure a special Valentine’s Day event along with the acquisition of a powerful restorative that will help players out during New Game+.
Persona 5 Royal was released on March 31, 2020 for the PlayStation 4.
More: PlayStation 2: The Best Must-Own Exclusives (And Others You Should Skip)
